German Bundesliga - Eintracht Frankfurt vs. Schalke 04 - Preview & Prediction

Eintracht Frankfurt’s relegation battle has suddenly turned into a fight for a place in the Europa League next season, as the 10th-placed team hosts 9th-placed Schalke 04, with just one point separating both teams in the Bundesliga standings. Kick-off - at 12:30 PM ET on Wednesday, June 17.

Frankfurt Stay Strong On The Road

The current excellent road form of Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga extended to three consecutive outings after the team followed up league road victories versus Wolfsburg (2-1) and Werder Bremen (3-0) with a 4-1 triumph against Hertha Berlin away at Olympiastadion on Saturday. The Eagles buried four unanswered strikes in the second half, with Andre Silva recording two goals and an assist after the hosts opened the scoring in the 24th minute but saw a player sent off just before the half-time. Eintracht Frankfurt has moved up to 10th place in Germany’s top tier (W11 D5 L15), 10 points clear of the bottom three with just three games remaining, thus completely safe from relegation this season.

Portuguese striker Silva leads the Eagles with 10 markers for the current campaign, having scored six of them in Frankfurt’s seven outings since the Bundesliga restart. Goalie Kevin Trapp, meanwhile, occupies the 15th place in most saves, having stopped 69 shots in 20 appearances. He has picked up four clean sheets along the way and allows a goal every 51 minutes on average. Eintracht Frankfurt is 6th in most league goals netted so far this season (53), 3rd in most shots taken per game (15), 8th in ball possession (49.3%) and 14th in passing accuracy (75.8%).

Schalke Extend Winless Streak

Schalke 04 remained winless for a club-record 13 straight Bundesliga fixtures (D6 L7), but still picked up their second draw in as many games after splitting points with top-four aspirants Bayer Leverkusen in a 1-1 stalemate at Veltins-Arena on Sunday. Fielding their youngest lineup in three-and-a-half years with an average age of 23 years and six months, the Royal Blues opened the scoring from the penalty spot at the start of the second half (Daniel Caligiuri netting his 14th goal in 16 Bundesliga attempts from the spot), only for the visitors to get back on level terms with nine minutes remaining on the clock. Schalke 04 are 9th in the league (W9 D12 L10), four points short of qualifying for the Europa League next season.

With top scorers Suat Serdar (7 goals) and Amine Harit (6 goals) still injured, and Belgian forward Benito Raman (4 goals) doubtful with a back problem, Turkish striker Ahmed Kutucu (3 goals) is set for his second consecutive start. Alexander Nubel, meanwhile, has posted 77 saves this year, sitting 13th in the Bundesliga’s goalie chart. He has recorded six clean sheets in 23 games and gives up a goal every 68 minutes of play. Schalke 04 are 4th in the least goals buried this year (36), 3rd in the least shots delivered per game (11.1), 7th in ball possession (49.9%) and 11th in passing accuracy (77.5%).

Prediction

Both teams are safe from relegation, but can still reach the second qualifying round of the Europa League by finishing 7th in the Bundesliga. Schalke 04 sit four points off that position, while Eintracht Frankfurt trail the treasured spot by five points. As it stands, though, it's the Eagles who stand the better chance of actually making it to the 7th place. Frankfurt has been in admirable form lately, losing just one of their last four contests (W2 D1 L1), while Schalke’s recent struggles have seen the side from Gelsenkirchen go winless for a club-record 13 straight Bundesliga games (D6 L7). Even more crucially, the Eagles have lost just two of their previous nine meetings with the Royal Blues in all competitions (W5 D2 L2), posting a clean sheet in five of those contests.

Best bets:

Eintracht Frankfurt to win (-135)

Eintracht Frankfurt to win to nil (+210)

Andre Silva to score anytime (+150)

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